Omar El-Azhary
6 May 2012
Common Sense
Making people understand a serious situation like America’s independence is not easy, but Thomas Paine was able to do so through his book, Common Sense. Thomas Paine was able to communicate his ideas to common simple farmers and to the high class intellectuals very easily. He lived at the time of the American Revolution, and Common Sense is one of his main publications that urged Americas’ independence from the British. Born in 1937, Thomas Paine was originally an English man to his father, and he holds radical views on religion which caused him criticism and so little people attending his funeral when he died at 1809. Paine live in a critical time, he lived in the time period that is the most
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He argues in his book that it was one of the biggest mistakes in history to bring a monarchy succession. Paine thinks it is very important for people to understand that man originally was in the state of equality, which means that inequality was caused by some certain circumstances which are in America’s case, the British occupation. Originally, there were no kings, until the ancient Jews demanded one, and from here it started. Paine considers this as a sin because god only should rule over the people. The ancient Jews asked the prophet Samuel to have a king, at first he tried to dissuade them, but he couldn’t. They insisted on having a king, until they had one. This story in Paine’s opinion must be known by everyone in order to understand what is happening in America, and why they should face it and stop it. A revolution must be held by people who understand the situation, and why it is wrong, Paine had the evidence to prove that the British in America is wrong, and that they must have no king and a heredity succession. Thus, they have to make a Revolution, which is the American Revolution, urging for America’s Independence.
Paine even gives more and more evidence to prove that the monarchy and the heredity succession system is absolutely a mistake that must be fixed. He explains that the Bible is in opposition of the monarchy and heredity system. This means, Paine describes, that God is in opposition of
Religion played a crucial role in Paine's argument. He knew that the most of colonists had some sort of religion that he can use as a basis for his argument. One of the points that he made was that a “distinction … of men into Kings and Subjects,” is not from god, it is from the “heathens,” (Paine, 72). Paine made sure to tell the readers that this interpretation is directly from the Bible so if anyone wanted to check for themselves they can. He supported many of the things he said from the Bible so that people would not question it. He used stories of how Israel wanted a king even though god himself did not want one to voice his opposition of the leadership of monarchy. The Bible was a major source that Paine used in order to unify the people under one cause. Before this essay people did not know who to side with, the new colonies or the monarchy, who they have who they have been loyal to until this point. Now Common Sense gives them a reason to support the
The pamphlet placed blame on the British government for the distress of the colonies. Paine’s writing stated that Britain was taking advantage of America through taxes and by using its corrupt power to keep the colonists in submission. It was his writings that provided the inspiration necessary for many colonists to support the movement for independence from Britain. Paine had no idea that his writing of
Thomas Paine believed that the selection of Kings was unnatural because people are born into being Kings and nothing assures that the person will be a good leader. Just because your father was a good leader does not mean that you will be one. Paine states that nature would disapprove it, and that we should not give mankind “an ass for a lion”1. He says that when we were created we were all created equal. The British had so much control no one could do anything about it. They could not overcome the government and it made the colonists feel useless. This is exactly why Paine criticized the monarchial government because they were indeed doing everything unfairly and doing it only to benefit themselves.
1. The problems that Thomas Paine sees with the British monarchy involve its straying from ideal government, the unjust placement of one individual above all others, and its hereditary aspect. The problems that Thomas Paine sees with King George III in particular are his personal transgressions against liberty. Thomas Paine, firstly views government as “but a necessary evil” (15), and therefore it should be both as limited as possible and also tied to the more positive society. The ideal form of government, thus according to Paine, is a simple republic where the elected are forced to be accountable to their electors (16). The British monarchy fails in all accounts; not only does the prescence of a monarchy at all eliminate the accountability of a republic, but the complicatedness of the British monarchy system makes it worse in this aspect than even other monarchies. Although absolute monarchies are horrid in that they give no power to the people, they are still simpler than the British monarchy; this makes issues much more difficult to handle in the British monarchy (17). The other problems that Paine has with the British monarchy apply to monarchies at large. Paine argues that the placement of one person above all others is an unnatural divide; there is no explanation for the division of people into “KINGS and SUBJECTS” (22) such as there are in other forms of division that humans live with. If it does not make sense to place one individual above all others, then such should most certainly not be law; therefore, from this logic, monarchy, which is entirely based on the principle of placing one person (and their relatives) above all others, is an invalid and unnatural form of government. Of course, some people could, arguably, have earned the admiration and respect of their peers through important action, and thus be deserving of a leadership position. In a republic, by listening to their electors, the elected earn their right to lead. However, the hereditary monarchy removes this earning of the right to lead, and Paine takes issue with that. There is no guarantee that the descendants of a good leader will also be good leaders, and therefore the government of a country should never be left to heredity (29).
He argues that a democratic system based on continual elections and rights of the people protected by a written constitution would be more beneficial to society. To strengthen the concept of democracy, Paine speaks of a hypothetical society brought up in an isolated part of the world, away from other inhabitants. This supposed society represented the first people. Thomas Paine claims that some of its people will have many accomplishments other will not; thus through hunger, disease, misfortune and death it is inevitable that the people will set up some form of government that “…will establish a common interest with every part of the community, they will mutually and naturally support each other, and on this (not on the unmeaning name of king) depends the strength of government, and the happiness of the governed” (Thomas Paine, Common Sense). This statement reassures his beliefs towards democracy while showing how pointless English rule is to society. Thomas Paine is attempting to promote American independence with this document by explaining the benefits of democracy, in doing so he is demeaning the English government. Paine emphasizes the prejudices the English may have had by stating, “And as a man, who is attached to a prostitute, is unfitted to choose
Even though the Jews did not have a king, they demanded to have one. Once their needs were fulfilled, they figured that having a ruler would keep them from fighting in wars. Their kind of government is “administrated by a judge” to explain more for a better picture, the kings are referred to as the monarchy because they are like the government ruling over America and therefore Paine wants to show his audience that they don't have to be ruled over by a government they can fight for their own
In the second section, Of Monarchy and Hereditary Secession Paine refers to biblical evidence that monarchy is sinful and serving a King is like worshiping a false idol. He brings this up because many saw a divine King like God and were afraid that if they did not follow the king’s orders they were not following Gods orders. Since all mean are equal he states that no individual and their family should own the thrown of a nation forever. Paine also adds that the very first king was chosen so all kings after should be chosen by election.
Scott Liell’s book 46 pages: Thomas Paine, Common Sense, and the Turning Point to Independence ultimately describes Thomas Paine’s life and showcases the struggles he went through and the outside forces that influenced him to write Common Sense. Liell’s book also expresses the importance of Common Sense, stating that it is the “single most influential political work in American history” (16). Paine was born and raised in England, in which the King and his monarchial rule would have evident influence in his later
Thomas Paine attacked monarchy and hereditary succession in the beginning of his argument because he wanted to gain more support on the revolt against Great Britain. His approach was straight forward and got right to the point for the independence movement and the rights of all men. He wanted to show that supporting the independence movement instead of remaining loyal to the British crown was a better idea and would result in happier lives. Paine declared that mankind was originally in a state of equality, and therefore, current inequalities must
One of the most famous documents of early American history, the essay-pamphlet by Thomas Paine (1737-1809) was anonymously published in the colonies in January 1776. Paine called the English King George (George) III "royal monster", personally responsible for all acts of injustice being carried out against American colonists. Printed in the year of American declaration of Independence, ‘Common Sense’ with a huge amount of circulation, the pamphlet had a profound impact on the attitude of the colonists to the British crown and became the most effective tool of anti-British propaganda in the struggle of the American colonies for secession from England. Thomas Paine was a man who has influenced America like no other and should be honored but people remember only about such founding fathers as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and almost do not remember the most avid defender of democracy who created America’s political foundations and influenced the moral foundations of many people.
He says that the “government is just” and that “there is nothing to engender riots and tumults”. It is very obvious that these things are not true in regard to our current government. Our current government is not just, as it is riddled with corruption and systemic oppression of minorities. In America today, only a small portion of the people feel protected by the government. It is also untrue that there is nothing that the government does which incites riots. We can see examples of riots and protests against the United States government occurring every day. Currently there are protests against racism in the police force, protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline, and protests such as the Women’s March against our new president. This shows that Paine’s description of a fair and just government does not hold true
It claims all monarchs are despots, cut off from their people and craving for absolute power. “Male and female are the distinctions of nature,” Paine wrote, “good and bad the distinctions of heaven; but how a race of men came into the world so exalted above the rest . . . is worth enquiring into” (Paine 9). Government is a necessary evil, a “badge of lost innocence,” that tends to get in the way of civilized society. Modern civilizations should organize themselves into local, self-governing societies with only representational government, suggested Paine, not an all-powerful monarch. “Of more worth is one honest man to society, and in the sight of God, than all the crowned ruffians that ever lived” (Paine 17).
He wrote this in order to explain and seemingly demand American’s rights and what he thought they all wanted and what would be most fair to all involved. As mentioned above religion seems to be the center of most controversy, he too had his opinions and it mostly involved where church belonged and most importantly, where it did not belong. Paine spoke in a prejudice tone but proposed this to be an unbiased composition. “The adulterous connection of church and state, wherever it had taken place, whether Jewish, Christian or Turkish, had so effectually prohibited, by pains and penalties every discussion upon established creeds and upon first principles of religion, that until the system of government should be changed, those subjects could not be brought fairly and openly before the world” (654). He felt that if the government shared their two sense that it would shake up the whole country. His argument was claiming that it was unfair to the people to have a government share in one faith. This after all, was a new world; a world full of equality and everyone should have their own right to believe. Thomas Paine was one of the only people to share his wisdom and speak for the people and made the most points in the right direction, which is fairness. He truly supported whatever the American dream was perceived as at that
Throughout Common Sense, Thomas Paine shows that he is against Monarchical government, and he says that the government type itself is not a reasonable means of ruling a nation. To support this, he sheds light on several reasons in which a monarchy is a bad choice for government. Paine says that all the power is unbalanced and vested in the hands of a single person, which most of the time leads to the King of the nation using the powers he has, against his people, for the benefit of himself, and those around him. Paine also says that to have hereditary succession of a monarch is complete nonsense. Paine uses his reason to support this case by showing that maybe a nation is lucky and has a well fit ruler as a King, but who is to say the King’s successor will be best fit for the position of King or Queen of a country. The notion that one ruler is fair and just, does NOT guarantee that the successor will be as just or as fair.